A/N: I'm in a rush, so this'll be a short note. I'm terribly sorry this Valentine's shot is late but I've had some personal difficulty. And I was rather looking forward to getting this out. I own nothing, naturally. And I apologise for any OOC behaviour, I haven't written this for a while. It's post-marriage Rose/Dimitri and you can either assign your own little thoughts to it or use my fic 'Aftermath' as a prequel. Bear in mind that Adrian has a part in the success of their wedding, and Lissa and Christian have gotten to know Dimitri. Anyway, enjoy the story!
8:49pm : Rose & Dimitri's Accommodation
"Roza, up," Dimitri uttered, tracing one hand along her jawline and hoping in silence it wouldn't be snapped up by her teeth. A drawn-out moan escaped her lips and she turned into the warmth of the contact, only to find her awakening sped up by the beams of moonlight that streaked in through the blinds. She parted her lids then took in the room. One of the closet doors was ajar, the bed was a mountain of duvet and pillows around. Most important of all, the vampiric day was starting - that one in particular had a great significance. Rose gazed upwards and stopped; there was unmistakable affection in the irises of the man standing half-dressed beside her.
Valentine's Day... she mused. That was...quick.
"Morning, Russian slave driver," she teased, sitting up and blowing a clump of hair out of her eyes. "I think I'm losing my touch, I nearly called you something like babe or sweetheart."
Dimitri chuckled at the disgust painted on her face and retorted, "What's wrong with either of those?"
"They're boring." She darted up to peck his lips and sprung from the bed. As the wardrobe doors were flung fully open, she added, "And we're not."
"You're not scared of being domesticated, are you?" Then, he raised one eyebrow. One. Eyebrow.
"Comrade, you're lucky the closet's cramped, otherwise I'd throw these shoes at you. Hard." Much to her chagrin, the target was out of range for even a half-hearted glare; he'd somehow found a reason to clothe his upper body and so he'd taken to the kitchen. Rose hurried her own preparation to join him.
As she entered, any anger dissipated. After all, the sight wasn't one she saw often. "Did breakfast make itself, or something?" She gestured to the dining table. The Russian shook his head. "You've been up for a while, haven't you?"
Satisfied with his affirming nod, she sat down and eyed the various choices: croissants (of several different kinds), pancakes drizzled in something she was convinced was maple syrup and toast from the land of endless toppings. Hence, before her other half could take a seat, she reached out for him and entwined their fingers. With a little thank you on the tip of her tongue, too.
"Don't mention it, Rose." And, without warning, he swept in and stole the reply from her lips.
The kiss was pure ecstasy, a drug. Her drug and his. Lips against lips, pliant and heated, erased all coherent thought of how he'd pulled her up too firm or how Rose could feel the curved edge of the table eating into her back. The need for oxygen became a distant memory - and the hands that rested on her hips, so near to the furniture in question, sent a trail of fiery pulses to cast a spell on her nerves as well. Alas, Dimitri drew away, panting against the soft skin of her cheek. She cradled the nape of his neck with one hand and, in the other, fingers danced over his wedding band. "Roza..."
"As much as I'd love to stay here and listen to you say that again, the food is waiting," she reminded him. Her fellow guardian let out a breathy laugh before he sunk onto one of the chairs. From the widening of his eyes, however...
Looks like you didn't expect me to sit in your lap, she thought, as she lead her fingers in a dance along his thigh. A foot on the ground stabilised her and her 'chair' soon adjusted.
"For later, I was thinking-" he began, only to be cut off by the look on her face. It had dawned on her. Along with the fact that she'd forgotten all about her plan to be the early bird, catch the Valentine's Day worm then bring it back in time to minimise suspicion. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing. I need to go and get some chocolate, okay?" She ground the words outdiscarding her croissant and attempting to work her way down from her perch. At first, Dimitri wore a bemused smile.
"None of the shops that sell it are open yet, remember?" he prompted.
"Well, we need some and I... I guess I'll find some," was her defiant answer. Accompanied by the patter of her feet hitting the floor, she stood and rounded on him.
"Then those two bars in the cupboard are something completely different, hmm?" An unrest had burrowed into his gut. And it had nothing to do with that syrup.
"I'll be five minutes," she insisted. Meanwhile, swear collated in her palms so she opted for a fleeting capture of his lips. Just when she was about to leave, he raked a hand through his hair.
"Rose." That gained her attention. "What are you hiding?"
In his eyes, she happened upon a startling sea of concern, confusion and fear. He wasn't giving her the benefit of the doubt anymore. If there had been two working brain cells in her body, one being rational and the other not, the dysfunctional one had won over. He couldn't find out. Since their wedding, they had altered each other in inexplicable ways so that she'd been able to formulate an almost flawless plan. It couldn't shatter, not at such a late stage.
"What makes you think I'm hiding something? And, even if I was, it wouldn't be your business anyway. Didn't you say something about marriages without secrets not really being marriages?" Rose stilted both her eyebrows.
"It became my business when you very clearly didn't want to spend Valentine's Day with me," Dimitri snapped, one fist clenched at the edge of the table. Guilt welled up at the outburst. Despite that, he maintained eye contact while her feet produced the woeful sounds of retreat.
"I'll see you later, Dimitri," she growled.
He flew to his feet, calling her name, "Roza..." In a heartbeat, the door had slammed. "Rose, are you seeing someone else?"
It wasn't supposed to shatter. But it had. And so had they.
11:30pm : Courtyard
Rose was fuming - not literally, of course. But her cheeks were flushed, red intermingling with cream, and her brows were set agitated over scorching eyes. Her feet carried her on a death march across the hard ground, as people shifted from her path. Until one didn't.
"Move, Adrian!" Rose commanded, fixing him with a metaphorical dagger. Yet Adrian refused to do so and only quirked the corner of his mouth.
"Someone's in a bad mood. I only wanted to get by," he muttered, tone sceptical.
"Then go."
"No."
"No? What the hell do you mean by no?"
"I mean no, I'm not going, I'm staying here. You look like you could tear Strigoi apart with your bare teeth and I want to know why..." Rose shifted uncomfortably under his gaze. For all Adrian made a point of being 'laid back', he'd developed the capability to get under her skin (going to immeasurable lengths in his efforts to discover whatever information he desired). The invasion made her teeth itch.
"Don't want to talk about it right now, Adrian," she replied, bristling.
"Really? It seems like something else." Adrian took an investigative step closer and canted his head. "Hmm?"
"Actually, you're right. I don't want to talk to you about it!" And, the second she'd finished, she thundered past. Her heart leapt when she thought she'd escaped his clutches. Uncommonly strong fingers trapped her and the Moroi reigned her back in, fuel tossed into the fire in her mind.
"Rose, stop it!" he spat. Indignant, she tugged on her arm and she hissed back at him. Stern frowning pierced her façade as she ground her teeth, coming to a halt.
"Fine. I had a god damn argument, what does it matter?"
"It matters because you're acting like a child, and I could be wrong but I think you've matured since we first met," Adrian asserted. "Cough it up."
"I'll cough something up..." Rose exhaled, hands on her hips. She began, "You know what today is, right? Well, I was going to get up early to buy Dimitri's present. I wanted it to be a secret. But I got up too late and now he thinks I'm seeing someone else."
Adrian's eyes widened and he held two hands up. "Woah, woah, hang on there. Rewind a little an tell me how the hell 'I'm going out' got to 'there's someone else'."
"He woke me up, breakfast was already made - there were pancakes and the toppings..." She licked her lips and sunk into a trance, only to be broken out of it when fingers clicked before her eyes. "Oh, sorry. Anyway, we talked as we ate and I tried to convince him to let me go and get chocolate - we argued, he got suspicious, he asked me what I was hiding, I stormed out and heard him say something about me 'seeing someone else'."
"He's not being completely irrational, you know. It was kind of suspicious," Adrian told her. When her face contorted into something somewhere between distraught and royally peeved, he amended, "And I guess he read those articles about how many couples get bored after the first few months of marriage."
"Real helpful..."
"Hey, would you rather I lie?" He acted wounded, crossing his arms. "Besides, the figures are pretty damning."
"I swear, one more crack and I'll-" Rose started, lips shrivelled up as the threat spilled from them. A soothing 'easy' was issued and he signalled for her to carry on. "Now, I'm getting his present and finding somewhere nice to enjoy it."
"That's not an invitation, is it?" Adrian raised an eyebrow, caught her eye then forced the other to join it. The woman in question shrugged. He could see her form shrink as she started to leave. However, she only made it a few feet before he yelled, "Rose!" Wait a minute."
"Well, hurry up. Like I said, I'm late already." A kernel of fury boiled inside her, her day had taken the express route to hell and Adrian wanted her to 'wait a minute'...
"Talk to him. I don't know what you're going to say, that's up to you - and when was I ever the one to come to for advice, huh?" he paused, and moved to stand in her path. "Just promise me you'll talk to him. Okay?"
"Yes," was the grumbled reply. With that, the guardian stalked off into the distance while Adrian cast his woeful glances after her.
2:01am : Rose & Dimitri's Accommodation
When Christian had first entered the flat - if that's what it could be called - his initial reaction had been to summon fire. Coats were strewn across the floor and a rather gaudy vase brought a whole new meaning to off-kilter. Silence suffocated the walls. The one footstep he took inside crackled through the air. What little he could deduce from all that left him at the door of the first room. His hand lifted to the handle, he was about to twist until he heard shallow breathing.
"Dimitri? Rose?" He turned away from the door to follow the sound.
"Christian," the former responded, voice resonating from the kitchen. The two came face to face: Christian looking utterly bewildered, Dimitri with low-lidded eyes and heavy limbs. "Sit down. Don't mind the plates. It was supposed to be breakfast for two but ended up as... Well, I'm sure you can guess, you don't need me to tell you about it."
"No, I think you should. I mean, I'm not a stranger anymore and neither is Lissa. Besides, you look like you need some company," Christian answered, taking a seat and leaning in close enough to catch wisps of the dhampir's soul swirling beneath his irises. Dimitri drew in air, prolonging the intake to calm his pulse. "I can get as far as the fact that you and Rose argued. Because there's no blood and no security alert, so she wasn't attacked. And I figured this is the only other thing that makes you so... So..."
"A wreck? It's senseless and the kind of thing you're taught to control as a guardian - you know how it is, 'they come first'." Dimitri ran a hand through his hair, and swallowed hard. "But I can't stop it."
"Times are changing. Just watch, defensive magic isn't that far away from guardians being able to have their own lives," the moroi urged.
Dimitri sighed once more. His eyes were focused on the table as recollections of the argument tumbled through his mind. The only issue was that they'd become contorted by the time he'd spent alone with his thoughts. He'd never been wholly unstable, not by a mile. Yet the chain of events that'd begun upon meeting Rose left scars on each and every inch of his person. Scars that seared every time there was even the remotest sign of discord between them.
"She wanted to go out, it was so...unusual. She was hiding something - so I asked her what it was. But, when she ran out, I... I thought she was cheating." He bowed his head, only for Christian to stir him with a shout.
"Hey!" The Russian jumped. Then he carried on in a softer tone, "Listen, don't make it worse. It wasn't your fault and I'd bet it wasn't hers either - she's got nowhere to stay so she'll have to come back at some point, even if it's just to get some clothes before she finds a room."
"And I'll, err, need to leave, then-" Dimitri began, standing up, about to head for the bedroom. Christian grabbed his arm.
"No, you don't. Stay here." In reply, he received a reluctant look. He conceded, "I'll stay with you until she gets back."
5:40am : Outside Rose & Dimitri's Accommodation Block
"Anyone who didn't know us would think we've applied for a sex change," Dimitri commented, and repositioned the shopping bag on his arm as his companion let out a snort.
"More like me - you barely bought anything," Christian replied. The duo peeked into the solitary bag Dimitri carried.
"Well, I said I only needed one thing. Everything else is at home. I tend to plan ahead, rather than do a last minute shop." He pulled the velvety case from its bag and trace the full length of it with his finger. Childish pride manufactured itself at the thought of it paving over their issues. Then he said to Christian, "I'll see you later."
"Bye, the moroi muttered, before he headed off in the other direction. It didn't take long for him to reach his apartment, yet one thing prevented him from entering. The door: no, it wasn't closed. It was wide open and a fraction unhinged too. After a moment's hesitation, he charged inside. The door, as it rebounded off the wall, shattered a long-rested silence.
Nimble fingers stuffed his gift in his pocket. Practised ears strained; there was no sign of life, although it was far from a picture of peace. Heart thundering against his ribcage, breath caught, he stumbled along. What a pitiful sight he'd walked home to: sofa overturned, kitchen cluttered with disregarded utensils, torn shower curtains. When his fingers came into contact with the tears, a thin layer of mud greeted his fingertips. All this paled in comparison to what he found in the bedroom.
Feathers hung from the shredded pillows and whatever weapon had been used had sliced through the mattress and frame. The closet was speckled with dirt, a hanger jammed halfway in and halfway out. Where he thought Rose's gifts were hidden - the bottom drawer of their bed - was empty save for a single red ribbon. Deathly fingers gripped his heart, dragging him into a reverie which only broke at the front door's creaking. He shot to his feet, took his fighting stance and peered out into the corridor.
"Dimitri?" It was Rose. He let out a sigh of relief and his worry was half-alleviated (the other half remained with her heavy tone). "What happened?"
"We... We were robbed," he told her, walking out into the hallway.
"How badly?" she quizzed and covered the remainder of the distance between them.
"I'd bet half of everything's gone, if not more. Everything from jewellery and fine china, to food and toiletries."
"I'll report it." At that, Rose scooped out her phone and a call was made. A minute, perhaps two, ticked by as the other side gave their gradual replies. Rose, at last, gulped and ended the call. "Umm... I came for some things but it looks like there's nothing to get, so I'll just go-"
"No, stay!" Dimitri cleared his throat. "Sorry. Please, I don't want to dance around this and I don't think you do either. Here, I never should've said those things. And it's all that's left of your present."
"Peace offering, hmm?" Rose appeared wistful. "I'm sorry, I...ate your present."
Just then, they both burst into laughter. Rose was close enough, so her head fell against his shoulder while the giggle fit passed. She heard him mumble, "It's not that bad. Open the box."
Box held level with her eyes, she pried the lid off. A captivated gasp left her throat and she glanced up at him. The box was cushioned by simple black velvet. Gold and silver chains, all of different sizes and purposes, ran around the edge. And, in the heart, there was a polished Garnet with 'Roza' inscribed across the smooth surface.
"I was going to take you to get it but I never got chance. I take it you like it?" He wore a shining smile.
"Like it?" His face almost fell - so crushing, as well - until she added, "I love it."
Relief teased the tension from his muscles and she tugged on his hand. It took him a heartbeat to realise the contact, despite his being focused on her and only her. Her face in particular. As a guardian, Dimitri had seen grand things. But the unadulterated joy in her eyes was enough for him. So he let her lead him to the end of the bed, where they pulled the mangled mattress onto the floor and settled down with the survivors of 'the pillow catastrophe'.
"You know, Roza, we lost an entire day to just one little argument. We'll never get that back," Dimitri noted, drawing her close to his chest and nestling his cheek amongst her locks.
"Tomorrow will be better. I'd bet my stake on it." They both knew she was grinning without needing to check. And, with a soft chuckle, the pair succumbed to an odd sleep.
While they slept, news travelled. In fact, so did a Moroi with a thing for perfume - one of the many parcels he slipped into the apartment. With a careful hand, he closed the front door again and smiled to himself. Rose would be keeping her stake.